Barnaby Joyce

The Nationals Member For New England

Manilla and Barraba residents a step closer to fast broadband with fixed wireless

05 Mar 2014

FEDERAL Member for New England, Barnaby Joyce, has welcomed the announcement that residents in the areas surrounding Manilla and Barraba will have the opportunity to connect to NBN fixed-wireless fast broadband.

After a thorough planning and consultation phase, construction of the fixed wireless network has now commenced in these areas.

Mr Joyce said that more farms, residents and businesses can look forward to having access to faster internet with the NBN expanding its fixed wireless footprint throughout the New England region.

The NBN also means you can have the whole family on line at once, opening up opportunities for local farms, businesses and the wider region to participate in the digital age.

“I understand it takes about 12 months from the start of construction until residents and business owners can order NBN retail services, so I am pleased that construction is commencing quickly,” Mr Joyce said.

“I have lobbied hard for many years to see improvement in technology access across rural communities.

“Recently I took Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communications Paul Fletcher across New England to promote the case for a mobile phone tower to overcome the black-spot in telecommunications.

“These measures are all part of a broader plan to improve the connectivity of our region with the rest of the nation.”

Mr Joyce has encouraged residents in these areas to visit the NBN Co website to see if their home or business is included in the coverage footprint via the interactive map at: www.nbnco.com.au/rollout/rollout-map and those who wish to sign up should call their preferred service provider to discuss internet bundle packages.

Additional details are also available online at: www.nbnco.com.au/get-an-nbn-connection/certified-service-providers.html